It Doesn't get Eddie Vedder than this 04-22-2026
Hello! This post is coming out of the study lounge once again. On Friday, I spent the post-Japanese test day in Kyoto which ended at the Rohm Theater for the third leg of Eddie Vedder's Japan tour. The lead singer of Pearl Jam, this is the first time Vedder had been to Japan for a solo show. He played for about 90 minutes and although it was mostly solo music, he played 2 of my favorite Pearl Jam songs: Corduroy and Better Man. A complete 180 from US concerts I have been to, eating and drinking anything was strictly prohibited. Similarly, the concert was slated to begin at 7 PM and Eddie Vedder got on stage rougly 10 minutes past 7. Even before the show began, attendees were not allowed to take any pictures or videos of the concert hall. There were dozens of ushers wandering the aisles and anytime someone tried to record, they would almost teleport to their side and tell them to stop.
I would estimate that approximately half of the audience were residents of Japan just there for a show while it seemed like a large majority of the fans were Pearl Jam megafans that traveled to the country strictly for the performance. There were a good amount of signs brought by fans, my least favorite of them read "My son is going to be born in the next couple months, can you please play Imagine by John Lennon?" Now I love the Beatles and that is an objectively good song, but out of all the songs you request for him to sing you pick one that's not his??? Maybe for his next show I can say that my son is about to be born and he would love to hear you play Black and Yellow Ledbetter.
On Sunday of that weekend, I met up with my friend Owen in Kyoto and we played baseball. My first time playing baseball in like 5 years, it was very fun playing with people that spoke strictly Japanese. I was wearing my Dodgers Ohtani shirt and that is only where our similarities began. Because I both pitched and hit. Not well but I did it. I am excited to do it again, and hopefully play in a similar league upon adulthood. Thank you for reading.
Oliver
